Land west of Pond Close, Overton, RG25 3LY

Authority: Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council
Appeal type: major · Planning Appeal
Procedure: Inquiry
Development: residential · Major dwellings
Inspector: Wilson J

Main issues, as the Inspector framed them

Whether the appeal site is a suitable location for housing in the context of the development plan and national policy.
The effect of the development on the character and appearance of the surrounding area with reference to landscape character, scenic character, and visual quality.

What decided it

The significant and irreversible harm to landscape character and the scenic and visual quality of the area was found to significantly and demonstrably outweigh the benefits of the scheme.

The substantial benefits of housing delivery, affordable housing, economic benefits and biodiversity net gain were significantly and demonstrably outweighed by the permanent and irreversible harm to landscape character, scenic character and visual quality, so the tilted balance did not favour granting permission.

Framework references: 11, 14, 57, 174, 175

Plan policies cited: Policy SS1, Policy SS5, Policy SS6, Policy EM10, Policy EM1, Policy EM4, NP Policy H1, NP Policy H3, NP Policy LBE1

Read the decision letter on the Inspectorate’s site

The main issues and the deciding factor are read from the published letter by Town Planner Pro; the letter itself is the record. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Research, not advice.

What an account adds

Draw a red line around your site and the appraisal follows.

Heritage. Listed buildings by grade and distance, conservation areas, scheduled monuments, registered parks and gardens, heritage at risk.
Landscape and environment. Green belt, national parks and national landscapes, SSSIs, ancient woodland, SPA, SAC and Ramsar sites, nutrient catchments.
Flooding. Flood zones 2 and 3, surface water, and both again with climate change.
Transport. The 800 metre station catchment and service frequency, bus stops with their weekday frequency, the cycle network, and the Framework’s transport tests measured for the site.

Then the development plan position, the housing land supply as an Inspector last accepted it, and every appeal decided around the site with its letter.

Every English appeal since 2016, with the letter behind it wherever the Inspectorate published one. Searched by meaning as well as by words, with the key case law counted live across the letters.

Casework that chases the deadlines. Applications, appeals and conditions with their statutory dates.

The judgement stays yours. The tool gathers the material and dates it.